First day off vanco; bad nausea

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notheidi
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First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby notheidi » Wed Jul 08, 2015 11:11 pm

Today is my first day off 14 day course of 125 mg vanco (preceeded by 10 day metro and relapse from that). I was doing ok until this afternoon, when I started getting really bloated, feeling green, and having a lot of nausea and some chills.

I've had 3 BM's today but no diarrhea. I emailed my doctor. I am worried. And I feel like absolute crap.

I want to cry. I am going to take some zofran for the nausea. Sometimes I under-medicate myself, so I need to remember to attend to that and not suffer unnecessarily.

I think I did finally figure out how I got c diff at work. I put my ipad on the counter in the nurse's station when I am reviewing charts. Then, I rest my ipad on my lap when talking with patients. Today I caught myself myself rubbing my hands on my pants, exactly where my ipad was. Mystery solved. That makes sense, as I would be high alarm to wash my hands after touching the nurse's station, but not so much after touching my own pants.

I really do feel like I'm about to have a meltdown, in terms of trying to keep the beast at bay long enough to keep my job and close escrow on my house in the next month.
2010 mod/sev w/leukocytosis, cefdenir-sinus inf, metro rx'd wrong, resurged during tx. recovered w/dose change, lost 40 lbs. 2015 mod recur fr SNF, no abx, resolved w/vanco. 7/2022 mod recur, community acq, no abx, intermittent prodrome but didn't realize

Jackie25
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby Jackie25 » Wed Jul 08, 2015 11:24 pm

Don't freak out yet! I know, easier said than done. Although vanco is easier on the system than flagyl, it's still a strong medicine that you've been on for quite some time. Coming off is not easy- it wasn't for me anyways. The first month after finishing treatment was nerve wracking and difficult to say that least. I personally experienced a variety of symptoms from stomach gurgles, nausea, chills, varied BM frequency and consistency, etc. It's hard to distinguish what may be recovery and what may be a relapse.

3 BMs and no D is a good sign in my opinion! That was my "normal" for months coming off vancomycin. Sometimes even more movements in one day. I was advised by two GIs that the frequency is irrelevant as long as no true WD is present and your feeling okay. Don't forget the brain to gut correlation- though it's hard at times to stay positive and look on the bright side- it's true that feeling down, anxious, or stressed can affect your gut and what it's doing. And your gut is responsible for a lot of your body's overall function I've been told.

Try to relax and remain calm :) when I'm sitting idle is when I get most anxious because my mind is able to wander and worry. Staying busy early in recovery helped me tremendously- reading a book or my bible, exercising, calling a friend or my mama. Anything! Stay positive, you will get through this! We all do! We all know what it's like and are here for you!

notheidi
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby notheidi » Thu Jul 09, 2015 12:12 am

Thank you so much Jackie! I have seen that written on the board before but I think I just needed to hear it said to me. I really appreciate it.

I am so grateful to you all. This is the best support site ever. No one really understands unless you've been through it. What a great group of people!!!
2010 mod/sev w/leukocytosis, cefdenir-sinus inf, metro rx'd wrong, resurged during tx. recovered w/dose change, lost 40 lbs. 2015 mod recur fr SNF, no abx, resolved w/vanco. 7/2022 mod recur, community acq, no abx, intermittent prodrome but didn't realize

beth22
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby beth22 » Thu Jul 09, 2015 2:06 am

I found that when I was off the vanco, I got food intolerances. Maybe you should write down what you eat and see if any patterns come up. I also could not tolerate dairy and I had to take less of my probiotic. I think since the vanco killed a lot of the VSL#3, I needed more, but off the vanco the same amount gave me GI symptoms. Are you still taking probiotics? It is a good idea to do so, but just make sure you don't overdo them either. Your system needs to adjust. I always found tapering easier than stopping cold turkey.

notheidi
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby notheidi » Fri Jul 10, 2015 12:44 am

Thanks, Beth. Yes, I'm talking a lot of VSL # 3: 2 pills twice a day. I will scale back to one twice a day...

Surprisingly, I'm not having food intolerances I don't think. The only thing is cranberry sauce. It doesn't like that for some reason.

This morning I had a lot of nausea and was, quite frankly, feeling sorry for myself that this whole damn c diff thing happened again, that the recovery is also a pain in the butt, etc. [But I am thankful for the recovery thus far, don't get me wrong!] Then the nausea improved and I started to feel a bit better.

I managed to find my zofran (in my underwear drawer of all places?!) no wonder why I couldn't find it. I couldn't find it last night and took an ativan instead. Which I probably needed.

Today I was constipated with small bits of hard stool. That doesn't actually reassure me as far as c diff not being back, because that's how I was when I had it--alternating constipation one day with runny D the next, until it all turned to runny D.

I heard from my GI who said it's probably not back, but if I was having D we could test and to let him know what I wanted to do. I wrote back and said I wasn't and I'd keep him posted.

So, we forge on with the info we have right now, which is all we can ever go on anyway. We meaning me + Mr Colon, LOL.
2010 mod/sev w/leukocytosis, cefdenir-sinus inf, metro rx'd wrong, resurged during tx. recovered w/dose change, lost 40 lbs. 2015 mod recur fr SNF, no abx, resolved w/vanco. 7/2022 mod recur, community acq, no abx, intermittent prodrome but didn't realize

notheidi
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby notheidi » Sat Jul 11, 2015 3:23 am

Still feeling constipated but passing small amounts of hard stool. Dry heaving today. Will try stool softener, but scared to do that.

No more happy poops right now. :(

There was a post a little while back about what c diff has taken from you. I was looking for the post but couldn't find it--this is trivial, but along with more significant woes, I totally miss taking reading material into the bathroom with me!

My home inspection went really well today. The place looks great. I'm planning on investing in fixing the aluminum wiring--it's an old house and apparently that's a fire hazard. But other than that it's looking really good. My goal is to stay healthy enough to keep going to work and close escrow in early August. I'm still scared about my health, especially with the C and now dry heaving. The C is how the c diff started this time--which is a bit of a weird presentation.
2010 mod/sev w/leukocytosis, cefdenir-sinus inf, metro rx'd wrong, resurged during tx. recovered w/dose change, lost 40 lbs. 2015 mod recur fr SNF, no abx, resolved w/vanco. 7/2022 mod recur, community acq, no abx, intermittent prodrome but didn't realize

Lisa33
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby Lisa33 » Sat Jul 11, 2015 8:05 am

So sorry you are dealing with C now. Are you eating foods with fiber, and fruits and vegetables, and drinking a lot of water? I would try using your diet to help the constipation before taking a stool softener. I have taken a stool softener before, but only from not being able to go for a few days. This is all definitely just my opinion, but based on my experiences with my daughter and myself, when it comes to constipation, is that first I try eating foods like prunes, peaches, berries, any fruit really, beans...and pretty much anything with fiber. Don't overdo it with the fiber, but just add a little more to see if it helps. But, you should also drink plenty of water to pass the fiber through you. Doing this to our diet, usually stops the C on its own. I resort to stool softeners when I am in pain and can't go for a few days because sometimes they will actually make me go towards the D side after. But, that's just me.

In my early recovery, I had nausea in the morning. It felt like morning-sickness really. So weird. I always had bad mornings where I would have to go several times, so I'm sure it was all related. I'm sure my nerves added to it as well, as I tend to have a nervous stomach in the morning. It also could be acid from sleeping and lying down all night as well. I don't know, but this all subsided as time went on.

I'm so glad that your inspection went well and good luck on your upcoming closing! Buying a house is so stressful, but so rewarding too!

Lisa

notheidi
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby notheidi » Mon Jul 13, 2015 1:28 am

Lisa,

Thanks for your thoughts. I will try to add more fiber.

I think I feel slightly worse every day, but still not the runny D that they will test and nothing super definitive that would cause me to feel an urgency to test. I don't want to waste my time and test for nothing. I am having the skinny poops. Just waiting to see whether it will resolve on it's own.

Sucks. But at least it didn't happen today. I am telling myself that if it happens, I will be pretty certain, and until then, just keep putting one foot in front of another.

I feel like keep saying the same thing here, but that's kind of the stage I'm in right now. Sorry nothing new or original! ;)
2010 mod/sev w/leukocytosis, cefdenir-sinus inf, metro rx'd wrong, resurged during tx. recovered w/dose change, lost 40 lbs. 2015 mod recur fr SNF, no abx, resolved w/vanco. 7/2022 mod recur, community acq, no abx, intermittent prodrome but didn't realize

Lisa33
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby Lisa33 » Mon Jul 13, 2015 10:09 am

Don't worry - we all can relate to the stage that you are in now. The beginning of recovery is the hardest as you feel like you can be relapsing off and on. I had those skinny, thin stools for quite some time early on. Adding fiber and florastor seemed to help with that, along with time of course. As long as you aren't having the frequent watery D, you are most likely doing fine. And if you are feeling good overall, then that's also a good sign. You will get there. It's just a long, unsettling process.

Lisa

Bobbie
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby Bobbie » Mon Jul 13, 2015 2:44 pm

Don't panic. You might have IBS. See CDI - three day rule and CDI- IBS. Approx. one out of five develop IBS after a bout of c diff.

Look in the Chat forum for the topic' "what has c diff taken from your life?"

House sounds good. Congratulate yourself on making an important decision while fighting c diff.

Hope tomorrow is better.

NanciT
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby NanciT » Mon Jul 13, 2015 5:45 pm

I wanted to mention if the nausea continues you may want to try"Sea Bands". I have used them throughout CDIFF and still as I am recovering. They have helped me a great deal.

Bobbie
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby Bobbie » Mon Jul 13, 2015 11:47 pm

Many of our poster have used Sea Bands with good results and no side effects. Thx for mentioning, NanciT.

notheidi
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby notheidi » Tue Jul 14, 2015 12:47 am

Lisa, Nanci, and Bobbie,

Thank you so much for continuing to support and accept me when I feel a bit pathetic!

I have never heard of Sea Bands but am looking them up!

I am definitely getting a little worse every day. My color is off and tonight I am starting to get the same distinctive low cramps with c diff. They are like below where I get period cramps, it's weird. That's where I always feel it with c diff. I called my doctor and asked him to order a test. His order should be in tomorrow.

I had a cannonball poop today too.

On the positive front, I have a few more home inspections this week, the HVAC and electrical. I am doing calculations in my head: 'Ok so if I have c diff and get on meds, I should be feeling well enough in a few weeks to be able to move.' Everything right now seems about timing. If I don't have health, I will settle for good timing!
2010 mod/sev w/leukocytosis, cefdenir-sinus inf, metro rx'd wrong, resurged during tx. recovered w/dose change, lost 40 lbs. 2015 mod recur fr SNF, no abx, resolved w/vanco. 7/2022 mod recur, community acq, no abx, intermittent prodrome but didn't realize

notheidi
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby notheidi » Tue Jul 14, 2015 9:41 pm

Sludgy c diff smelling poop today. Dropping it off at the lab tomorrow morning.

So depressing. I want it gone. I am so sad.
2010 mod/sev w/leukocytosis, cefdenir-sinus inf, metro rx'd wrong, resurged during tx. recovered w/dose change, lost 40 lbs. 2015 mod recur fr SNF, no abx, resolved w/vanco. 7/2022 mod recur, community acq, no abx, intermittent prodrome but didn't realize

sevla
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Re: First day off vanco; bad nausea

Postby sevla » Thu Jul 16, 2015 10:27 pm

So sorry to hear that notheidi - hoping that it is just IBS and c diff is not back.


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